Everyone's future depends on their self-confidence and how positively they view the events that occur in their life. This is what “Trying” by Suzanne Buffam and the novel Inside by Alix Ohlin show. Both the speaker and Anne face inner conflicts; the speaker gains confidence in herself, which helps her overcome her conflict and have a peaceful state of mind, while Anne loses confidence in herself, which leads to her failing to overcome her conflict and to lose confidence in herself. The speaker's reassuring tone shows her peace of mind in contrast to Anne's melancholic tone which shows her low self-esteem. Additionally, the speaker's use of allusion shows her inner peace which is a result of confidence in herself, while Anne's use of diction shows the demolition of her self-esteem. The poem and the novel show the importance of having self-confidence; However, the speaker in the poem gains faith through her struggles, which leads to her peace of mind, and the character in the novel, Anne, loses her faith, which leads to the degradation of her self-esteem. Both the speaker and Anne struggle with inner conflict; the speaker's confidence in herself helps her overcome her conflict, while Anne's loss of faith does not allow her to overcome her conflict. The speaker calls her husband "cooperative" (Buffam), but then she says, "And yet sometimes I fear it's his fault." Either he’s not trying hard enough or he’s trying too hard…” (Buffam). It is clear from this that the speaker's inner conflict is that she is thinking too much about her problems and trying too hard to get pregnant. However, she gains confidence in herself and understands her conflict as she says: "...Aristotle emphasizes that it is exclusively the irrational on which the marvelous... middle of paper... thinks she has no dignity. as she is incapable of becoming the perfect daughter her parents expect of her. She thinks negatively only because she loses self-confidence. Anne loses her self-esteem as she believes, “wholeheartedly in her faults” (Ohlin 19). This shows that Anne thinks she deserves to be raped and that she is worthless. Anne loses faith and blames herself for the sexual assault. Anne's negative tone shows a decline in her self-esteem. Unlike the speaker who gains faith and achieves inner peace, Anne loses confidence in herself and eventually loses her self-esteem. Works CitedBuffam, Suzanne. “Trying.” The irrationalist. Toronto: Anansi Press, 2010. 63-67. Print.Ohlin, Alix. Inside. Toronto: Anansi Press, 2012. Print.